ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Hurricane Idalia may have only struck a glancing blow to Tampa Bay, but it was enough to cause a lot of damage in the area, including at Shore Acres in St. Petersburg, an area that is prone to flooding. 

There's no official word on how many homes were impacted or how many families were affected, but the neighborhood association president said there are about 400 homes in Shore Acres that have repetitive flood insurance claims.

What You Need To Know

  • The Shore Acres neighborhood association president says about 400 homes have repetitive flood insurance claims

  • City dispatches teams to flood prone areas to assess damage an offer assistance

  • One couple says they suffered flooding for first time in seven years

Shore Acres resident Cliff Gephardt was going door-to-door Thursday delivering free tacos to his neighbors in need.

“My house didn’t get flooded — it was spared,” he said. “I know what these people are dealing with and I just thought, 'You know what, we’re gonna do the right thing.'”

For residents Eric and Tiffany Desonie, a full stomach and an empathetic ear from St. Pete Mayor Ken Welch when he visited their home Thursday were just the beginning of their long road to repairing and replacing what they lost.

“You can see the waterline — it's up past the baseboard," Eric Desonie said. “It's in the living room. The carpet as you can see is completely saturated. You can see it’s kinda soaked up into the couch here too.”

Water filled every room, the pool and the yard, and Tiffany Desonie said that if that's not enough, there's the smell.

“It kind of smells like a sewer in here," she said.

“If somebody were to take an accidentally dropped Port-A-potty and just let it sit here while the heat and no electricity, that's probably what this smell is,” Eric Desonie added.

They said the damage to their home is extensive. It's the first time in seven years they've lived in Shore Acres that this has happened.

But they say they count themselves lucky, not only to have what matters most safe and sound but they also feel lucky to live in Shore Acres. 

“You can get this type of house in other neighborhoods around here," Eric Desonie said. “You can get this kind of waterfront that probably doesn’t have the same type flooding, but the people. It’s such a community. They’re like our friends. So it’s worth every bit of this.”